A Sense Of Darkness
by Bree Colbern
Summary: Wanda Maximoff doesn't understand why everyone believes that Steve Rogers always tells the truth. She has the power. She's read his mind. She knows that he lies about himself. A lot. So why does everyone believe he only lies to his enemy? It makes no sense. But then again, maybe that's just how the Soldier feels about the Avengers.


**Heeeeyyyyyy. How ya' all doing? I'm back with yet another one. Woo-hoo! This was actually kind of fun to write, as I enjoy writing form Wanda's perspective and have only done that like once before. So...yeah, _fun_! ;D I've actually had this idea floating around for quite a while (along with many others) and just decided to write it, haha. So I hope that you like it! ;P **

**By the way, please send some prayers out to Yordano Ventura's family. He was a young pitcher for the baseball team "Kansas City Royals" and had a very bright future ahead of him, when he unexpectedly died in a car crash on the way to his friend's funeral. It's really sad and his family and teammates are really struggling with this. So please just send a prayer out to them a minute. Thank you.**

 **Now, please read and review. ;)**

 **Disclaimer: I own no part of this.**

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Wanda doesn't mean to do it.

Honestly, she has no control over it.

Sometimes, people's energy and/or emotions were so strong, that she couldn't help but sense it and feel what they were feeling. Sometimes, she would even read their minds without meaning to.

To her, reading someone's mind was as easy as thinking for herself. But she had been working hard on it recently, to stop her powers from taking over her subconscious. She made sure that no one knew that she could read their minds in an instant; know all of their secrets in a matter of milliseconds.

So she practices.

She's practiced for probably about half a year already, and she has been getting a lot better.

She can control herself and her powers a lot better than before. But lately, she's been having issues with it. Mainly because of _someone_. Steve Rogers has always been a rare and unique sort of person; there just wasn't anybody else like him. He'd lived through so many things, and yet had come out of it all _alive_.

Both physically and mentally.

But that didn't mean that a all of him was whole and alive. Whenever he walked into a room, she could immediately sense the darkness looming around him; in his heart and mind. Yet the smile on his face never wavered. Even though, when someone told a joke and Steve laughed, she wouldn't feel any joy emanating from him.

It was like he was just...empty.

Yet everyone believed that his smile was real. That he had a pure heart, soul and mind.

She knew that he did in fact, have a _good_ heart. That he was most definitely the kindest person she had ever met. But he had lived through too many wars, and too many heartaches to have a _complete_ heart and mind.

Yet everybody believed it.

Excluding her; but that was only because she could read his mind. Without her powers, she, too, would believe his facade.

Perhaps Steve Rogers was a better liar than once believed. She watches his actions, and now from being able to sense his emotions so much clearer than before, the brokenness in his movements is so obvious that she wonders how she had once not noticed.

She wonders how nobody notices.

So, as she sits at the table eating dinner with the 'New Avengers', like they did every Tuesday night, something that Steve and Natasha had decided on to help strengthen the team's relationship, she watches Steve yet again.

She glances down at her noodles from the popular takeout place a few miles away, momentarily, and loses her appetite.

Not because of the food, and not because it was takeout, as almost every time they all ate together, it was a meal they had all participated in making, another thing that helped their bonds to build, but because of Steve. His waning appetite had affected her through the current connection she shared with him.

She was just glad that he didn't know about her accessing his thoughts, and the fact that he had currently unintentionally caused her to lose her appetite; the guilt he would feel for burdening her with both would be nearly overwhelming.

She twists her fork around the noodles meaninglessly, glancing back and forth between her teammates and leaders. Natasha and Steve are talking about tomorrow's training session and how they were going to add in some more obstacles, and which one they should do.

But Steve didn't quite seem like he was...there.

Almost like he was somewhere else...somewhere deep and dark, and she refrained herself from digging deeper into his mind to find out what exactly it _was_.

She only knew that it was dark, and a memory of his past. A shiver went down her spine at the intensity of the pain and darkness.

Yet everybody around him seemed oblivious to it. Sam and Rhodey were laughing as they were trying to explain cartoons to Vision, Natasha and Steve were discussing the next day, while she watched him. Out of the blue, she decided to speak up.

"Hey, Steve, are you okay?" She questioned, interrupting him and Natasha and gaining everyone's attention. Everybody glanced between her and the man mentioned. He looked at her, obviously puzzled as a small smile formed on his lips and his brow furrowed.

"I'm fine," He said and she nodded slowly with a tight, forced smile.

"Okay." She said quietly, and everyone resumed their conversation, but she realized that she was the only one to actually know that something was wrong with Steve, and that his smile and words were such a lie. She could sense in his mind the confusion, and slight curiosity as to why she had asked.

She didn't try to read his mind, but she could still feel the _emotion_ of his thoughts. As well as she could sense the joy from Rhodey and Sam, the confusion from Vision, and the hidden pride of how far the team had come from Natasha.

But with Steve it was almost...numb.

Empty, and drained from any joy. She knew that he had purposely not asked her why she had questioned him; he didn't want to push the matter anymore because something really _was_ off with him.

He didn't want her to find out. But she already knew. She continued to observe him under very discreet eyes; a trick she had learned from both watching Natasha, and her lessons in training.

Even the next day, when some of the other actual Avengers had come to the facility to help with training, Steve still didn't seem any happier. And once again, just like she had suspected but had secretly hoped that she wouldn't be right, nobody had noticed his behavior.

To them, this was normal.

Maybe it was, but it still wasn't _right_.

No one should be that burdened; especially when nobody else seemed to notice. It wasn't their faults, exactly, Steve was just extremely talented at hiding secrets and lying. Perhaps, that was a trick he had learned in the army.

Or just a hidden talent he was born with. He may not be the greatest when it came to keeping regular secrets, or perhaps it was to only throw them off guard, but he was definitely one of the world's greatest liars when it came to himself.

Everyone was so taken in by his purity, but only she seemed to know about how broken he really was. She wonders if Bucky had even known. Even though he may be one of the greatest liars of this time, and his time, she still doesn't understand how they could have all been so taken in.

Maybe they don't know him as well as they think. Because all of the others seem to believe that he can only lie to his enemies, and to no one else. But why do they all think that? How were they all so taken in?

Apparently, he doesn't just lie to his enemies.

But maybe...maybe he does.

Perhaps, he feels as if _they_ were the enemy. Not necessarily an evil enemy that needs to be taken down, but as more of a threat to his security. As in, if they found out about him, he would be compromised. She sighs, knowing that there seemed to be no way to help him. But just because it seemed so hopeless, didn't mean that she would give up. No.

Because if there was one thing that Wanda could match Steve in...

It was her determination.

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 **Short, sure, but at least I haven't given up on this account. ;D I'm going to try and continue writing stories for the Avengers fandom, no matter how poorly I do so, lol. So please bear with me and we'll meet again with my next story! :D**


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